Ibadan Journal of the Social Sciences
Volume 22, No. 1, 2024
DOI: 10.36108/ijss/4202.22.0130
Fundamental Structural Defects in Nigeria’s Development
Obatunde Bright Adetola
Department of Sociology, Hallmark University, Ijebu-Itele, Nigeria
Abstract
Nigeria’s development, no doubt, has been challenged by many factors that show clearly that in spite of its wealth of natural and human resources, the nation is not on the path of development and progress. It is also obvious that other nations that were peers with Nigeria have since moved on, on the paths that are indicative of development and progress. The situation of Nigeria’s retrogression or underdevelopment, in comparison with her peers, then calls for questions to identify the reasons for her present state of developmental challenges that seem to have resisted all attempts to channel her in the right path. The paper attempts to unravel these problems by re-examining the social structure of Nigeria as a way of understanding the developmental challenges. In doing this, the two fundamental constituents of any social structure- ideation and institution- are relied upon but with greater emphasis on the one that have been neglected, i.e ideation by those agitating for re-structuring of Nigeria in the past many decades. The paper also relies on the Structuration Theory as a tool of analysis, understanding and explanation of the developmental challenges of Nigeria. The theory recasts structural functionalist theory as it emphasises the interconnectedness of structure and human agency as the duality of structure and action determining events in a society. The paper argues that the neglected and weakened immaterial constituent of Nigeria’s social structure (ideation) has developed damaging attributes that have resulted in defective human agency for many decades This, in turn, impacts negatively on the direction and functionality of the material and manifest social institutions of the Nigerian society that could have delivered purposeful and desired development with impactful progress for all. In conclusion, the paper is of the view that for any impactful development to occur, the immaterial aspect of culture bordering on human agency through which material and manifest institutions emerge and are built upon for functional deliverables should be the focus of any re-arrangement of the Nigeria’s development agenda going forward.